“When we get closer to nature—be it untouched wilderness or a backyard tree—we do our overstressed brains a favor.”

I am living proof this is true!! I NEED to be in nature. Nature is my church. I need to see trees, breathe in clean air, and be far away from people when life gets overwhelming! My blood pressure and attitude are instantly adjusted – it’s crazy and wonderful – better than any drug on the market for sure.

Hope you enjoy the recent vacation pics that represent peace and serenity for thelifebus! Just looking at these makes me calm after a very stressful week back to reality.

Hugging Trees: (A Redwood forest, Northern California)

Camping: (Lost Coast, Northern California)

Backpacking: (Lost Coast, Northern California)

Golfing: (Northwood Golf Course, Northern California)

And last but not least, we LOVE, LOVE, LOVE wildlife in ANY form! (Starfish on the beach of the Lost Coast)

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What can I say? When taking photos, I am often drawn to lines. I wonder if it’s some sort of a view into my psyche??!

The image below is from Angkor Wat, Cambodia, and includes several examples of the WordPress “Lines” Photo Challenge….lines created from the shadows of the pillars, the stone walkway steering her to the back of the corridor, the canopy of pillars creating a sense of depth, the cracks in the floor, the straps of her backpack, and the lines etched in the stone pillars….lines, lines, lines and more lines!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone! Look forward to seeing your posts!

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Why is it that many family reunions take place when a loved one passes? It’s not a horribly bad thing, and I suppose it’s understandable when you are all dispersed across the USA. It’s just kind of a bummer for obvious reasons.

A few days before Christmas – I got the note from my cousin – my first best friend in the world.“Gary died over the weekend”.Gary is her husband.It was horrible, I was in shock, didn’t know how to respond. I think I said something lame like, “Oh no”- I didn’t have the words. I don’t live in the same state to provide comforting hugs – she wasn’t ready to talk about it.I felt somewhat helpless.

She always wants to jump in my suitcase when I adventure, so I decided to plan one for the two of us and another awesome cousin of ours.Hoping this would be a good distraction, and for her to know that while not nearby, I am always here for her.Not anything over the top, no pit toilets, or camping in the woods in the middle of a 3rd world country, but something still adventuresome that I thought they would both like and would remember forever!

She picked Asheville, North Carolina as the destination.I jumped on that pretty quick, because Asheville is a very cool place, a smaller version of Denver or Portland. At first I looked at AirBnB for lodging options…then GLAMPING jumped in my head.Glamping is essentially camping, but with a few “plush” amenities.Which in the end, I think the only thing we didn’t have to do was sleep in a tent.We did have a fridge for beer, we had comfy beds, but no suitable showers, no toilet (port-a-potty) and no way to heat food, though there was a grill available for use.

The lodging of choice was Asheville Glamping.I’d give you the address, but then I’d have to kill you!They don’t like giving it out because they don’t want everyone and their brother driving through the property in search of a peek and disrupting the peacefulness of the place. The owner has great energy, my interactions with her were positive from the beginning – always a good sign.She is a young entrepreneur with a fantastic vision who wants to provide a unique experience for her clients.

Asheville Glamping has severaldifferent options for lodging – a few airstream trailers, 2 tented cabins, a tipi, and several dome-like structures.My cousin mentioned it would be fun to rent all of the airstreams with a group of friends – they are clustered together – I couldn’t agree more – it would be a total blast!!

Below is a view of the campground from our dome. You can see all of the sites are fairly well spaced apart, with the exception of the airstreams by the blue/white camper in the distance.

Almost all of the sites had their own fire pit but, there was a community section if you want to mingle with other campers.

Each “glamper” is decorated with pretty sweet furniture and bedding. We poked our heads in one of the larger tents and captured this….super cute. This particular tent had it’s own hot-tub and nice sized deck to enjoy.

The tipi below only sleeps 2, but it is adorable and sits at the base of some nice trees. I am sure they are amazing in the summer!

What did we choose? We picked the biggest dome they had so we would have room to spread out and wouldn’t be in each others “stuff” the whole time. It was the 1,000 square foot – mega dome – a one bedroom with a loft.The loft had two options to descend to the bottom floor – a SLIDE or stairs.It was awesome.I think there is a little more work to do inside, but it was great nonetheless!

What was the dome like?Well, it is a giant orb if you will. Half of it is covered in white canvas to provide some privacy and shade, the other half is clear plastic so you can enjoy the stars at night, the sunrise in the morning, and have a beautiful view of the surrounding rolling hills of the Smokey Mountains.

(The master bedroom and kitchen – Image by Asheville Glamping)

(A view from outside – Image by Asheville Glamping)

It was a treat to wake up and see the sun shining in the dome every morning.In fact, the sun was so bright, we had to wear shades (I feel like there is a song there…) and slather on the sunscreen while eating breakfast!My cousin had the pull out couch, so every night she could see the stars and reflect on the events that have turned her life up-side down.

All in all, we had a great time and I think it was a good distraction for her! We spent a day shopping and exploring the arts district in Asheville, hiked in the Smokey Mountains, ate and drank to our hearts content, celebrated a birthday and laughed until we cried telling stories of growing up with our crazy families.It was good to see her laugh :-).

I did learn there is a picture of one of my cousins that I MUST get my hands on.He is very handsome and has gorgeous, wavy, red hair.He was 17, 2 days before his senior yearbook picture was taken. His friends convinced him to get a perm.It turned into an afro.His picture was taken in a baby blue suit with a big tie in an oval frame setting.Every time I think about it, I want to die laughing!! 😂 I MUST HAVE IT!!

If you haven’t seen beloved family in a while, I highly recommend it! So good for the soul. Oh, and glamping in North Carolina isn’t too shabby either.

Cheers,

Pam

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Ok I’m grasping at straws here. I am currently working in San Antonio, TX. The hotel I love happens to be near the popular River Walk. The river is the San Antonio River that flows through the downtown area of the city. The touristy part of the river is about 2 miles long. The total length is about 15.

It’s lined with shops, restaurants and bars and is very high energy, which is what I enjoy most about it. I need to do more exploring as there is a section designated as a World Heritage site which includes several missions. Late night working hours need to stop!

Some people call it the Venice of America. Uh no, there is nothing like Venice in my humble opinion.

My image for the week is of a set of umbrellas that catch my eye every time I walk by. Colorful umbrellas are prolific along this section of the River Walk.

If anyone has explored the missions I referenced above, I would appreciate some tips!

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Sometimes you meet some incredible people through life’s adventures…we’ve all met them…every now and then one sticks as a life-long friend because of their personality or more importantly, what they do for humanity.

My friend Joe is one of those people who is big on personality and who has one of the biggest hearts of anyone I have ever known. He is loved by so many, totally hilarious, self deprecating, and strives to do great things in the world. He also happens to be an incredible athlete. In one year I think he participated in some ridiculous amount of Iron Man competitions – I know this stat is wrong but something like 5? Crazy huh?

I once flew to Kona, Hawaii to cheer him on in the grand-daddy of all Iron Man Triathlons and because of that, he inspired me to do a handful of my own (not an Iron Man BTW)….The year he did this, Jared Fogle, the Subway sandwich spokesperson, turned child perv, participated in the race too! I remember having so much pride for that guy, until his secret life was exposed (Jared that is). UGH!!

One of the papers in Colorado (The Colorado Springs Gazette) printed this story about Joe over the weekend – I thought some readers would love this and might want want to follow along in his journey. I am hoping I get to run with him when he makes it to the Four Corners area of Colorado in July!!

You may think he is a little crazy for doing this, but I think he is AMAZING and I admire him for jumping on his Life Bus and attempting to do something he has always wanted to do and for causes that are important to him!!

Love you Joey xoxo

Please see the article below!!

Why this Colorado Springs man is running across the country with a baby stroller

“I’m gonna die here,” Joe Turcotte recalls his 17-year-old self thinking, before he went off on a hitchhiking, Kerouac-ian odyssey, eventually landing in Colorado Springs.

Now, 36 years later, he’ll return to Boston. Pushing a baby stroller with all his survival gear, he’ll take the first of an estimated 6 million steps. He plans to total 3,000 miles on foot across 13 states and expects to finish in Oceanside, Calif., before Labor Day. That’s assuming 30 miles a day, with one day off every week.

Turcotte is leaving his job, the best job he’s ever had, a refund investigator for a medical billing company. Then again, he’s never been one for a career. And then again, “I stare at monitors all day,” he says. “So people are afraid I’m gonna get hurt, but you know what? I’m more afraid of dying on my keyboard.”

He’s leaving the comforts of home, his girlfriend of 12 years. Diane Sebastian gets it. She’s a traveler, always flying somewhere, because she’s retired and seeing the world is what she’s always wanted to do.

They were at church when the pastor asked his listeners what they would do if they could do anything.

Run across the country, Turcotte thought. “What the hell are you waiting for?” Sebastian asked.

So off he’ll go April 28. In some ways, it doesn’t feel so different than the last time he did something like this.

Before arriving to Colorado Springs, Joe Turcotte was hitchhiking around the country out of high school. He said his interest was in partying, not running. Photo courtesy: Joe Turcotte

Except, “at 17, all I wanted to do was drugs,” he says. And throughout his adult life, without kids or career, all he’s wanted to do is test his body.

That passion was discovered in the Springs, the young nomad’s next spot because he had a buddy who lived here.

“Knew him from the time I was 8 years old in Massachusetts,” Turcotte recalls. “Well, he wound up going into an attic and killing himself. By this time, I was 23 or so, and that suicide was probably the best thing that happened to me, though it was the most horrific at that time.

“But I thought, well, this is me, it’s gonna happen sooner or later. That’s when I decided I’m gonna run the Pikes Peak Marathon.”

That seemed unlikely for the periodic construction worker – how else to pay for the booze? – weighing 260-plus pounds with a thick beard to hide his frown. Athletics never appealed to Turcotte. Maybe they would have if he had a father who was into that. But his father left, and his mother was left to care for the 4-year-old boy.

She worked long hours. “I was kind of able to do what I wanted most of the time, unfortunately,” Turcotte says.

Joe Turcotte runs the 1994 Pikes Peak Marathon. He ran his first race on the mountain 10 years before, after the suicide of a friend. Photo courtesy: Joe Turcotte

In 1983, he wanted to run up Pikes Peak. He did. And so began a new addiction.

“This was something I totally did to get away from drinking and drugs,” Turcotte says. “After work, I’d just go run.”

He signed up for more marathons, shedding the bad thoughts with the weight. He got into triathlons. Then he went on an Ironman kick. Over seven months in 2016, he completed five of the sufferfests consisting of a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and 26.2-mile run.

“When he sets his mind to do something, it’s gonna happen, and he just really embraces challenges,” Sebastian says. “He likes to kind of just go to the next level. I guess this is just the next journey in his adventure with himself.”

He wants to see how he does “in situations to communicate with people I don’t know, which I haven’t done in a long time.” He wears hearing aids for the severe loss over the past decade.

It’s made him a shell of himself, no longer the social man he’s always been. He stopped running in his regular meet-ups because he couldn’t hear others talking to him, and he felt bad for not responding.

He felt he fit in better with Achilles Pikes Peak, the group of people with disabilities who push each other to be active.

“He’s showing people he’s not afraid to get out there,” says Karen Kantor, executive director of that nonprofit, for which Turcotte will raise money during the cross-country run.

He’s also benefiting Canine Companions for Independence, because once he attended “a graduation” where trained pups met their new kid owners, kids with disabilities. “It’s the most emotional thing I’ve seen in my life,” Turcotte says.

He’s calling the run his “6 Million Steps of Gratitude.”

“I really am pretty damn lucky to get to do something like this.”

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I went for the rude awakening on this theme for this weeks WPC – Awakening. Mainly because it’s essentially still winter in Colorado. Sure, it was 60 degrees and sunny today, but I fear we will get a 5 foot snow storm in the coming weeks. I don’t have a garden and things are barely blooming around town.

Ok, so here goes. Last summer I went to Borneo, Malaysia for two weeks. One of our packing list items was a pair of leech sox. Who has a pair of those hanging around? No-one with any fashion sense (they were cheap to buy in Borneo). These sox are so tightly woven, leeches cannot penetrate the fabric. They also warned not to wear pants with zip off legs because they can inch their way through the tiny teeth of the zippers.

I didn’t believe it – I thought – no friggen’ way can they get through zippers. But it was true. Disgustingly so. Those little buggers look like super skinny nails when not engorged….and when they are done feasting they blow up to about 1.4 inches or 4 cm.

This image below is a macro version of tiger leech we came across in the Danum Valley (image taken by John Mittan – our guide). They sit on leaves and lie in wait until something walks by. As soon as they get a whiff of you, they jump and then wiggle their way into strange places! UGH.

There were 10 people on our trip – all but 2 of us got attacked – I did not – thankfully. Probably because I was obsessively checking my body parts. They landed on arms, necks, stomachs, and crawled through pant zippers. It was a rude awakening these things even exist, much less are able to crawl through zippers!!!

For those of you who live in climates where these creatures exist, bless you. I am truly disturbed by their existence! LOL.

Have you ever been “attacked” by a leech??

Cheers,

Pam

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Ok, so the backpacking trip to the Lost Coast is coming up in a few weeks! I can’t believe it’s already here. I am WAY behind on training – need to get on it so I am not the slowest person in the bunch…though I generally do like to hike in the back of the pack so I can stop and take photos without irritating people. We’ll be out there for 3 nights/4 days – SOOO excited. It’s been on the list for YEARS – finally carved out time to do it.

I keep getting questions about this hike, where it is, what it’s like. The Wonderland Guides Group describes this area better then I ever could:

“The Lost Coast is a stretch of California coastline so rugged that roads have not conquered it. The remoteness is a rare respite from the rest of the state. There are no mansions tucked along hillsides or congested lines of traffic winding along the cliffs. Here crumbling gashes of the King Range tower from the sea, blocking the way of everyone not on foot.

Between the cliffs and the sea, the Lost Coast Trail passes along the narrow band of tortured beach. It is the domain of the hiker, a desolate and severe landscape draped by a pristine ecosystem. The path leads from hidden beaches to expansive vistas at dizzying heights above the surf. Apart from sea lions and the occasional troop of Scouts, hikers discover pure solitude. The Lost Coast Trail is one of the finest beach backpacking trips found in the United States, and it has steadily grown in fame and popularity over the years.”

A map of the area looks something like the image below. You can see the 101 completely bypasses the area. I will pick up my ride in Sacramento – in fact, I am going with REI Adventures – my go to trip organizer for things like this. We are spending the first night in the Humboldt Redwood park and then hitting the trail on day 2.

I may be out of shape but I think I am ready with the gear! Key items I am bringing with: (I wish I could bring the pup – little lover)

Waterproof down Sleeping bag by Sierra Designs

Super lightweight sleeping pad by Klymit

Small blow up pillow by Sea to Summit

Lightweight down jacket by Patagonia

Light weight waterproof rain jacket by Patagonia

Wool base layers by Icebreaker

Wool socks by Smart Wool

Wool hat/fleece mittens

So much more is going in the bag, but the stuff above will keep me warm, dry and comfortable should the weather take a turn for the worst.

Alright, alright, time to get crackin’ on the training now that this is all taken care of!

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So I think I’m late to the party, but I FINALLY found Jennifer’s Color Your World 2018: 120 Days of Crayola, a 4 month (January 1, 2018 to April 30, 2018) blogging challenge event. Each day has a new color theme based on a past or current crayon color in Crayola’s box of 120 crayons.

Um, crayons are some of my favorite things. An ex-boyfriend once bought me a box for Christmas – one of the best gifts ever!!!

The Color today is Blue – coincidentally, I bought a new painting this weekend. I know the whole thing isn’t blue, but it was the blue in the bus that caught my eye. The Life Bus LOVES VW buses, vintage camper vans and airstream trailers as they all scream open roads, freedom and adventure to us!

#coloyyourworld; #cyw

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I LOVE the National Parks in the US. We are so lucky to have all of these amazing natural open spaces at our disposal!! My goal is to take my Life Bus to each and every one of them at some point as there is always something pretty cool to see.

Case in point, this weekend we were visiting friends in the Palm Desert in Southern California, a few short miles from where the world famous Coachella music festival takes place. I think in my 20’s that would have been on the bucket list, now I shudder at the thought of being around that many drunk and stoned people in a confined space, even if it is outside!

We had some time on or own, so Sean and I decided to explore the Joshua Tree National Park. I always thought U2s famous Joshua Tree album cover was shot in this National Park, but realized the tree lived outside of Death Valley. The tree sadly died in 2000 at 200 years of age. There is a shrine somewhere off highway 190 to pay homage to it! I’m kinda bummed we didn’t look into it. Nasty people keep chopping parts of it off…not sure about you, but that kind of thing drives me crazy.

(Image by SwittersB & Exploring)

Once we made it to the park, our first stop was the Cottonwood Visitor Center, where we grabbed a map and directions to the Lost Palms Oasis trailhead. The park ranger told us the 7.2 (ish) mile hike (out and back) would take 5 to 6 hours and to bring a gallon of water per person. We generally don’t carry that much, but we probably should have. It was hotter than blazes and I am pretty sure we are dehydrated even 2 days later!! It would have been nice to have extra water to wet a bandana or SOMETHING for a relief from the relentless sun.

This is how it all started…..this is pretty awesome….we didn’t see anything like this again for a while.

It was a hot and dusty trail – in the middle of the Colorado Desert – exactly how you would envision a desert to be. Not one cloud in the sky (or just a few wisps), not one ounce of moisture, no shade, anywhere. Just a sea of brown with an occasional orange barrel cactus and some pretty cool rock formations every now and then – I totally expected more desert blooms, but not sure when it rained last. At one point, I was like, “Why are we out here again?”, questioning our decision to do this hike in the first place. We apparently weren’t the only 2 thinking this as we ran into a young couple hiking up when we were heading down who asked, “Is it it worth it?”.

After about 3.2 miles (ish) of hiking through the barren desert, with scorched skin and lips, we came upon a beautiful sight – SHADE in a stand of fan palm trees – an Oasis. The first one I have ever seen in my life. It was AMAZING. These fan palm trees apparently only live in this Colorado desert. I realized most of the the pics I took did not have people to show how big these things really are – with the exception of the image below. Pretty incredible given the preview of growth (or lackthereof) we saw on the route along the way.

At the end of the hike, with depleted water bottles, tons of rocks in our shoes, salty faces, swollen fingers, and hot skin, we were glad we did it and would recommend this hike if you ever find your way there.

Start early (we started too late at 9:30), definitely bring more water than you think you need, bring a picnic to enjoy in the Oasis, take a nap in the shade, and have a cold beer (or cold beverage of choice) in car for the end if you can swing it.

I would also recommend camping in the park….I would imagine the sunsets/sunrises are pretty incredible.